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| Important things from the 2011 NLDS |
All of this set up a Game 5 match-up in Milwaukee, with Game 1 starters Yovani Gallardo and Ian Kennedy returning to the mound. Game 5 would turn out to be the best game of the series. A Chris Young solo shot started things off in the 3rd, the Brewers scratched out a run in the 4th to tie it, then in the 6th, Kennedy got into trouble. The inning started with a double to Braun (his 4th of the series), a walk to fielder, and a failed sacrifice attempt by Rick Weeks. With 2 on and 1 out, Jerry Hairston Jr. comes to the plate and smokes a line drive to deep center field. It was a no doubt double that would almost certainly clear the bases, even with Fielder on 1st. As the crowd in Miller Park got on their feet to celebrate, something improbable happened. Chris Young, turned around in a full sprint and charged for the ball, which was headed to the deepest part of the ballpark, as he reached the warning track Young stretched out his glove hand and made an incredible over the shoulder catch that would make Willy Mays smile, banged into the wall, and promptly fired a strike back to the infield, keeping the runners at 1st and 2nd. What happened next may have actually been more improbable, as Yuniesky Betancourt of all people drove Braun in from 2nd on a base hit to give the Brewers a 2-1 lead. That lead would stand until the top of the 9th when Milwaukee brought in their mustachioed closer John Axeford to protect the lead. Arizona refused to go down without a fight, however, as Gerrardo Parra led the inning off with a double. He advanced to 3rd on a Sean Burroughs single, and with runners on the corners and no outs Wee Willy Bloomquist executed a perfect safety squeeze, bringing the tying run to the plate. Axford would get out of the inning, and with the Brewers going down quietly in the bottom half of the 9th, we were treated to free baseball in Game 5. As it turns out, only one extra inning was needed. After the Diamondbacks went down in order in their half of the 10th, Carlos Gomez hit a one out single, stole second, and scored the winning run on a Nyjer Morgan single. The Brewers had won their first playoff series since 1982.
The other senior circuit series would feature my two least favorite NL teams in a head to head battle. It was tough watching this back and forth affair as I struggled to root for either team. The Phillies were the consensus favorites to win the series and the NL pennant. But, much like the Red Sox found out, pennants are won on the field, not in the offseason. The Phillies took Game 1 with Roy Halladay pitching 8 innings of 3-hit, 3-run baseball. Game 2 featured Chris Carpenter going on short rest against Cliff Lee. Carpenter struggled mightily, allowing four runs in the first two innings, and was pulled after a scoreless 3rd inning. Tony LaRussa would have to rely on his bullpen, and they came up big, as six relievers managed six scoreless innings, only allowing one hit. The offense chipped away at Cliff Lee and the Cards had tied the series up, and were heading to St. Louis - where shadows and squirrels would dominate the headlines. Game 3 was a pitcher's duel with two fine young southpaws facing off in Cole Hammels and Jaime Garcia. LaRussa made a curious decision in the 7th inning of a scoreless game, intentionally walking Carlos Ruiz to face pinch hitter Ben Francisco with two men on and Francisco made him pay with a 3-run shot that would ultimately be the game winner. Game 4 was another tight one with the Cardinals coming away with the 5-3 victory. More importantly, in Game 4, a squirrel that had made a cameo in Game 3, returned to prime time. This time he made his presence known by scurrying across home plate while Skip Shumaker was batting, much to the chagrin of Roy Oswalt who got tagged with the loss. This all set up a win or go home game back at Citizens Bank Park. LaRussa would again turn to Chris Carpenter, this time on normal rest, to battle his old teammate in Toronto, and friend, Roy Halladay.* About an hour before the game began, a squirrel was found running across the field. This was a bad omen for the Phillies and I think it is safe to assume that the squirrel had flown in with LaRussa and the Cardinals. Both pitchers had their ace stuff working in Game 5, as Carpenter pitched a complete game, 3-hit shutout, which bested Halladay's 1-run, 6-hit effort in eight innings. As hard as it is for me to type this, Carpenter threw a hell of a game, even if he did take his shirt off like a female soccer player when the final out was recorded and Ryan Howard was writhing on the ground in pain after blowing out his achilles tendon.
*Did you know they were friends? After watching the TBS broadcast I think I ascertained that they were friends. They even stood next to each other in a Blue Jays team photo one year! I think it was the 17th time the announcers mentioned it, that it became clear to me that they are, in fact, BFF's.
Right or wrong, much of my baseball watching is colored by my Cincinnati Reds fandom. The fact that two of the Reds' division rivals are facing off in the NLCS leaves me wondering where the Reds went wrong this year and where the Brewers and Cardinals went right. The last two seasons have seen the Reds and the Cardinals develop a bitter rivalry, stemming from a benches-clearing brawl in 2010, that makes every game they play must see TV. It's pretty simple, Reds fans hate the Cardinals and Cardinals fans hate the Reds. The Brewers, on the other hand, don't have a whole lot of history with the Reds. They made the move from the AL to the NL in 1994, and the two teams haven't really had any bad blood in that short time span. Even so, I found myself rooting for the Diamondbacks in the Division Series. After the Brewers won yesterday on a Nyjer Morgan walkoff single, I reflected on this outcome and decided I was wrong for rooting against them. They aren't perfect, but the Brewers are a fun team to watch. They have two great sluggers in Ryan Braun and Prince Fielder, three great starting pitchers in Zack Grienke*, Sean Marcum and Yovani Gallardo, a closer with a wicked mustache, Bob Uecker in the booth calling games, and probably the craziest player in the postseason in Nyjer Morgan. Personally, I'm conflicted on Morgan. His intensity can be both lovable and infuriating depending on your perspective, but I'm beginning to think that characters like Brian Wilson and Nyjer Morgan are good for baseball, even if they annoy me some times. This sport can be a little too buttoned-up and stodgy for me sometimes, and guys like Morgan add a little spice. So, I will be rooting for the Brewers in the NLCS, and as it turns out, it's not just because they are playing the Cardinals.
*Aside from being an excellent pitcher, Greinke has gained my favor by speaking out on the evils of Chris Carpenter. Regarding the Cardinals, he was recently quoted as saying, "No one really likes Carpenter, but besides that, they respect mostly everybody on their team."
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